ESB substation blaze in Dublin proves downtime is not simply an inconvenience

Thieves attempting to steal copper from an ESB substation sparked a multimillion euro fire in Bluebell, Dublin on Sunday evening, April 17th.

ESB Networks said that 120,000 customers were left without power for a prolonged period of time when the 220KV substation was targeted.

The blaze caused the loss of electricity supply across Inchicore, Lucan, Tallaght and Rathfarnham and other parts of west Dublin.

The scene of the fire at the ESB substation in Bluebell in south Dublin.

Downtime can have a huge impact on the safety of people and on bottom line for business

Tallaght Hospital lost power during the fire. ESB Head of Distribution Senan Colleran said in a public statement that:

Tallaght Hospital lost supply. These theives were putting lives at risk. Not only did they put their own lives at risk, but they put other people’s lives at risk too.

It was also reported in the Press that a multinational pharmaceutical plant in West Dublin lost up to €5m as a result of unplanned operational downtime caused by this event.

The scene of the fire at the ESB substation in Bluebell in south Dublin.

Power Downtime is not just an inconvenience

This is a prime example of how unexpected power disruption can damage businesses, cause data loss, compromise operational efficiency and endanger people.

Many organisations, such as data centre, industrial processing, healthcare and transport operators require an uninterrupted supply of electricity to maintain mission critical functions.

On average, the cost per minute of unplanned data center downtime can reach €10,000 according to the latest industry reports.

At Hanley Energy, we deliver tailor-made solutions, including UPS technology, to protect business continuity night and day. Our systems never sleep, so that our customers can.

The scene of the fire at the ESB substation in Bluebell in south Dublin.

Why you should invest in an uninterruptible power supply?

In 2010, Hanley Energy provided Ireland’s premier transport operator, CIE with IT infrastructure and critical power technology to support their complex nationwide operations and ensure non-stop delivery of service to all customers.
Hanley Energy came first in a public procurement process to build this turnkey data centre. In the years since, we have supported CIE with service, maintenance and training to deliver 100% uptime.

An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is a device that allows critical equipment (such as computer systems, ventilation systems, emergency services) or, when combined, an entire facility to keep running for a pre-designed period of time when the primary power source is lost, in order to either gracefully shut systems down without data loss, or to give back-up systems, such as generators, time to come online and take up the slack. UPS systems also provide protection from power surges.

UPS in the Data Centre environment

UPS in the Data Centre

In Ireland, Europe and the USA, our ongoing work for a Global Data Centre Technology Giant involves deploying critical power solutions, change-over controls and a data centre information management system in data halls which range from 1 to 5 MegaWatts.

We have implemented and continue to manage 30 halls of this scale over the past three years alone, and we continue to deploy critical power and infrastructure solutions for customers large and small, at home and across the globe.